Mesut Ozil's Injury Won't Derail Arsenal's Title Hopes

Arsenal are still in with an excellent chance of regaining the Premier League title, despite Mesut Ozil's recent injury setback.

The German midfielder was forced off at half-time with a hamstring injury during the Gunners' Champions League second leg against Bayern Munich, which ended with the North London side crashing out of the competition.

Speaking at a press conference, Wenger admitted that Ozil will require further tests to determine the severity of his injury and could face a lengthy lay off, missing the side's crunch match against Tottenham. "We have to make a scan tomorrow to see how bad it is but he is out for at least a few weeks," Wenger said.

Ozil's goal and assist in his side's 4-1 FA Cup win looked to have shown a change in the tide for the German playmaker, after he missed a penalty in the first leg against Bayern and was subsequently dropped for the 4-1 victory over Sunderland, per Telegraph.

Bogdan Maran/Associated Press

However, injury looks to have curtailed his chances to continue his on-field progress with the Gunners, which will present a midfield headache for Arsene Wenger as Jack Wilshire looks set for long spell on the sidelines after his injury while on international duty with England, per Independent's James Orr.

Former Manchester United defender and Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville took to Twitter and accused Wenger of failing to give Ozil a break, blaming him for the midfielder's recent injury.

It does look as though the squad could be boosted by the return of Aaron Ramsey following injury, with the North London derby with Tottenham targeted as the Welshman's first game back, and chance to fire his side one step closer to the title.

Alastair Grant/Associated Press

The Gunners sit in third place, seven points adrift of league leaders Chelsea with a game in hand, and in the same situation as second-placed Liverpool. They will have to continue on their title jaunt without Ozil—for now, at least.

With Ramsey set to re-enter the first-team fold, Ozil's injury could not have come at a better time as the Welshman will be keen to rediscover his form from the first half of the season, where he bagged eight league goals in 18 matches for the Gunners before his injury, per WhoScored.

Premier League: Table as it stands

Position

Team

Played

Won

Drawn

Lost

GD

Points

1

Chelsea

29

20

6

3

34

66

2

Liverpool

28

18

5

5

38

59

3

Arsenal

28

18

5

5

24

59

4

Manchester City

26

18

3

5

42

57

5

Tottenham

29

16

5

8

0

53

6

Manchester United

28

14

6

8

15

48

BBC Sport

White Hart Lane could provide the perfect backdrop for the midfielder to rediscover his form and help to continue Arsenal's title charge, which includes matches against Manchester City and Chelsea, as a number of six-pointers present themselves in coming weeks.

Ramsey could also be boosted by signing a new, lucrative deal at the Emirates as he looks to secure his future with Arsenal and, as a by-product, remain focused on winning silverware, as tweeted by Sky Sports' Pete O'Rourke:

His return will come as a welcome boost for Arsenal fans too. They look to see who their talisman will be as the side remain focused on rewriting their history and ending their nine-year wait for silverware after last picking up the FA Cup in 2005, with their last league win in 2004.

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Ramsey now has the chance to return to the Arsenal side and provide the welcome boost that Wenger's men need to keep their title charge alive, with the midfielder able to inject some creativity back into the starting XI.

With his future looking secure too, he could yet write his name in Gunners folklore as the man who drove the club over the line and, finally, brought pride back to the North London outfit.